rec.autos.simulators

Wally

Jason

Agreed.  I wouldn't want to hang around with people who didn't want me
around.  Got better things to do with my time.

--

Fester

'I never met a piece of chocolate I didn't like.'

"In God We Trust ...."

- U.S. Currency

"One nation, under God ...."

- Pledge

Q: According to American tradition what flag can be flown above
     the Stars an Stripes.

A:  Chaplains Flag, when underway, during worship. aboard U.S. Navy
      warships only.

"... no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free
exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or
the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the
government for a redress of grievances. "

- U.S. Constitution

" ...... Statesmen my dear sir, may plan and speculate for liberty,
but it is religion and morality alone, which can establish the principles
upon which freedom can securely stand ..."

John Adams, 1776

" .... with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence ..."

- The Decleration of Independence

The Constitution of North Carolina, 1776:
XXXII. That no person, who shall deny the being of God or the truth of the
Protestant religion, or the divine authority either of the Old or New
Testaments, or who shall hold religious principles incompatible with the
freedom and safety of the State, shall be capable of holding any office or
place of trust or profit in the civil department within this State.

The Constitution of Delaware, 1776:

ART. 22. Every person who shall be chosen a member of either house, or
appointed to any office or place of trust, before taking his seat, or
entering upon the execution of his office, shall take the following oath, or
affirmation, if conscientiously scrupulous of taking an oath, to wit:

" I, A B. will bear true allegiance to the Delaware State, submit to its
constitution and laws, and do no act wittingly whereby the freedom thereof
may be prejudiced."

And also make and subscribe the following declaration, to wit:

" I, A B. do profess faith in God the Father, and in Jesus Christ His only
Son, and in the Holy Ghost, one God, blessed for evermore; and I do
acknowledge the holy scriptures of the Old and New Testament to be given by
divine inspiration."

The Constitution of New Jersey, 1776:
XVIII. That no person shall ever, within this Colony, be deprived of the
inestimable privilege of worshipping Almighty God in a manner, agreeable to
the dictates of his own conscience; nor, under any presence whatever, be
compelled to attend any place of worship, contrary to his own faith and
judgment; nor shall any person, within this Colony, ever be obliged to pay
tithes, taxes, or any other rates, for the purpose of building or repairing
any other church or churches, place or places of worship, or for the
maintenance of any minister or ministry, contrary to what he believes to be
right, or has deliberately or voluntarily engaged himself to perform.

XIX. That there shall be no establishment of any one religious sect in this
Province, in preference to another; and that no Protestant inhabitant of
this Colony shall be denied the enjoyment of any civil right, merely on
account of his religious principles; but that all persons, professing a
belief in the faith of any Protestant sect. who shall demean themselves
peaceably under the government, as hereby established, shall be capable of
being elected into any office of profit or trust, or being a member of
either branch of the Legislature, and shall fully and freely enjoy every
privilege and immunity, enjoyed by others their fellow subjects.

I can actually understand that part, even though I'm not a Christian,
and I also think Jesus was a pretty swell dude if not some sort of
supernatural entity.  I've always thought that the concept of "God"
was more of a hippie-esque universality and in that sense some guy
wandering around telling people to be nice to each other and to accept
each other's faults was probably a part of "God" more than most
people.  Anyway getting off topic here...

The part that baffles me is literally interpreting folklore passed via
word of mouth among wandering shepherds several millenia ago.  Even
more baffling is the way some parts are interpreted metaphorically,
others are taken literally, and others are simply ignored, all 3 often
in the context of the same set of passages (Genesis and Leviticus
being the 2 biggest offenders).  If there were any consistency at all
in interpretation (I mean among a single sect, not between different
denominations) I'd find the whole thing more respectable.

The tax-exempt status of religion in the US gets my goat more than
anything but that's more for another rant.

Finally, my feelings on that guy being expelled from the league really
depends on how consistently rules are applied.  If he was removed for
his paint scheme in the same spirit that keeps people from splashing
swastikas or "Satan rocks!" all over their car, I don't really have a
problem with it.  Personally, if I were a league admin I'd let people
use whatever they wanted regardless of how offensive, but I can
understand people not feeling the same way.

Jason

This backs me up again.  All these refer to the relationship of govt to
citizens, not of citizens to citizens in private organizations.  Of
which a league would be one.

--

Fester

'hAS ANYONE SEEN MY cAPSLOCK KEY?'

Take my job for example. Full of churchgoers who clutter the breakroom up
with tracts, add to the noise pollution with their incessant religious
debates, and more often than not are some of the laziest people I know. This
is acceptable to the management of my company. While I certainly believe in
God, I also realize the majority of these people are idiots. And many are
vicious backstabbers.

Now, one thing I feel strongly about is *** legalization. In the past
I have enjoyed a taste of it, and if the opportunity presented itself right
now, I would happily partake. Were I to begin sharing my strong opinions for
legalization, not to mention my fondness for *** at work, however, I
am sure I would have to endure the sort of alienation and persecution many
believers only dream of. Hell, I would probably be on the list of people
they want to get rid of, in spite of my outstanding work performance. Not
only that, but people who feel differently about pot would soon get annoyed
having to listen to me. So, I keep my opinions to myself.

If you were sharing your convictions with your league, I do hope you weren't
overly zealous about it. Nothing wrong with it mind you, but if you carry on
about it all the time, you will annoy the hell out of people.

And if it makes you feel any better, RASCAR paint regulations prohibit me
from having a big pot leaf on the hood of my car. And *** women, which
also arouse strong feelings deep within me.

Anyhoo, that's my opinion.

This whole thread's getting funnier and funnier.
Keep the wit flowing.

P.S. You do realize you are all going to hell for this, don't you ?

No kidding. For a minute there, I thought we were under another terror
alert.

Added to US currency in 1956.

Actually no, "under God" was added by Eisenhouer in the 50's.  Before
that, there was no mention of God in the pledge.

"Twenty times in the course of my late reading, have I been upon the
point of breaking out, "This would be the best of all possible worlds,
if there were no religion in it!" -- John Adams

"the government of the United States of America is not in any sense
founded on the Christian Religion." - Treaty of Peace and Friendship,
Article XI, ratified by the Senate and signed by John Adams

I feel a lot better about living in Pennsylvania now, even with our
archaic liquor laws and shops that close at noon on Sunday.  Then
again this state was founded by those fleeing religious persecution in
England and was largely settled by Germans fleeing the same.

Here are some nice quotes for you in return:

"I do not believe in the creed professed by the Jewish church, by the
Roman church, by the Greek church, by the Turkish church, by the
Protestant church, nor by any church that I know of...Each of those
churches accuse the other of unbelief; and for my own part, I
disbelieve them all."  -- Thomas Paine

"The Christian priesthood, finding the doctrines of Christ levelled to
every understanding and too plain to need explanation, saw, in the
mysticisms of Plato, materials with which they might build up an
artificial system which might, from its indistinctness, admit
everlasting controversy, give employment for their order, and
introduce it to profit, power, and pre-eminence. The doctrines which
flowed from the lips of Jesus himself are within the comprehension of
a child; but thousands of volumes have not yet explained the
Platonisms engrafted on them: and for this obvious reason that
nonsense can never be explained." -- Thomas Jefferson

"During almost fif*** centuries has the legal establishment of
Christianity been on trial. What have been its fruits? More or less in
all places, pride and indolence in the Clergy, ignorance and servility
in the laity, in both, superstition, bigotry and persecution." --
James Madison

"That Jesus Christ was not God is evidence from his own words." --
Ethan Allen

"As to Jesus of Nazareth, my Opinion of whom you particularly desire,
I think the System of Morals and his Religion...has received various
corrupting Changes, and I have, with most of the present dissenters in
England, some doubts as to his Divinity; tho' it is a question I do
not dogmatize upon, having never studied it, and think it needless to
busy myself with it now, when I expect soon an opportunity of knowing
the Truth with less trouble." -- Benjamin Franklin

Most of the founding fathers were atheists, agnostics, and gnostics.
This is pretty well documented.  George Washington (who,
coincidentally, asked to not have clergy near his deathbed, fought for
freedom from religious intolerance and persecution, and nominated a
Universalist to an Army chaplain position) would be appalled by the
governmental crusades for Judeo-Christianity that have occurred for
the past 50 years.

Jason

Just because his league would discriminate against you.   ;o)

Elrikk

Eldred
--
Homepage - http://www.umich.edu/~epickett
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Never argue with an idiot.  He brings you down to his level, then beats you
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Eldred
--
Homepage - http://www.umich.edu/~epickett
GPLRank:-1.680
MonsterRank: +334.169
N2002 Rank:+17.59

Never argue with an idiot.  He brings you down to his level, then beats you
with experience...
Remove SPAM-OFF to reply.